The next day is a misty morning in the forested foothills, shrouding the mining town. After breaking fast you all leave the inn and are able to collect the rest of your purchased gear from Tolm's Outfitting. So, without losing much time at all, you set out on the trek heading north. After exiting through the gates the road is pretty good and the civilization is not far away.

That first day you pass by a three wagon caravan heading towards Blasingdell, coming from a mining outpost. They dwarves and humans are not very talkative, but after exchanging a few pleasantries you are only able to learn that they have had an uneventful trip.

The second day, you are no longer on a good road, the path is more like a game trail and often rugged and rocky. The day is dreary and overcast, threatening rain. You decide that the territory is not so friendly looking anymore.

Please set up your marching order for the duration of the outdoor trek. Grid coordinates, please, preferably in the shaded area.

Also I need a new watch rotation for night time.

Map Notes: Lighter colored vegetation is difficult terrain if more than 50% of Square. Same with darker vegetation, but the darker also provides 20% concealment being bushes, 50% concealment for small creatures. The wood colored circles are tree trunks.

Vlad looks skyward and grumbles something about rain. The overcast sky did not bode well for the swashbucklers spirits of the prospects of getting wet. The trek on foot so far had been uneventful, but the last hours, the wilderness and hostility of the surrounding woods seemed to close in on the group. It did not feel like they were in friendly territory any more.“Looks like rain, doesn’t it?”

The swashbuckler looks down at his bow in hand, and rubbing at an apparent scuff mark in his nervousness. Now that they are less friendly woods, he kept the weapon in hand, just in case the orcs happen upon the group.Looking around at the other members of the party, Vlad hopes for their sakes the weather holds and does not get worse. It would be a miserable trek if they are all soaked…

Vlad will march at K5. Then i suggest Orekk, followed by Abutan, with Morrolan bringing up the rear. Hellsing out front somewhere....

"Aye, may happen. I do love the smell just before rain." Orekk replies to Vlad as he draws his green cloak around his armor. "There are waterfalls in the depths, glorious spectacles. But it's not the same..."

The dwarf's boots are caked in dust from the road and his demeanor seems optimistic today as his blue eyes search the heavens. The large shield on his back covers much of his haversack and his wide axe swings from his belt. With a loaded light crossbow in his hands, he levels his gaze back on the road ahead.

Her steps were naturally quiet, her paced measured. Even though they had already been traveling a day, she continued to pay attention to the trail and the signs of life around her, in a peripheral way. Her people had a connection with the natural world and the flora and fauna around them.

Hellsing enjoyed being out of doors. Even the threatening rainstorm did not bother her. Instead, she would welcome the rain.

The sorcerer looks up at the sky and pulls his cloak a bit tighter around himself. He's never been crazy about the rain. After one particularily long march in a down pour he realized why. It wasn't the fact that the rain was cold or got you soaked. As he walked the cold was brushed aside by the heat his body produced by walking. Once the cold was gone the wetness was nothing to handle.

No, it was the fact that he couldn't comfortably stop for any amount of time. Soon as he sat down and stopped moving the cold and wet would seep into his bones and lodge itself into his aching muscles. He would much rather have the rain hold off until they made their camp. Or better yet, made their way under ground.

He nods at Vlads observation but says nothing, instead examining his loaded crossbow that he held at the ready in the ever increasingly oppressive landscape they found themselves in.

Morrolan was tromping in the wilderness, his large frame not built for much stealth as it is. But being laden down with armor and gear, he clanks and the leather creaks.

"Huh, I could do without rain myself. Just makes cleaning weapons more work. Got to keep them from getting rusty."

He has his longbow in hand while turning every so often to check their back trail. While if things come upon them, he probably won't have much cause to fire many arrows, it will help to shot some while closing the distance as he comes from behind to the fore.

You can make Knowledge Nature checks to predict weather. Or try Survival with a higher DC.

Finding an decent campsite will also be a Survival check.

Every make Listen and Spot check in next IC post for me to have on file, please

Map Notes: Lighter colored vegetation is difficult terrain if more than 50% of Square. Same with darker vegetation, but the darker also provides 20% concealment being bushes, 50% concealment for small creatures. The wood colored circles are tree trunks.

Morrolan looked around at the sky as well after the elven ranger called a brief halt. He has a boot propped on the rock in front of him, ready to step up. He rested the longbow on his shoulder as he looked skyward.

"You want to look for a cave or something? Or just start looking for a more sheltered place to pitch our tents?" While rain would not be good for their gear, there was not a whole lot they really could do about it now.

"Maybe we should have spent some gold on waterproof bags. If anyone wants to put more gear in our magic bag, now might be the time. It appears to keep things in dry inside."

The duskblade doesn't have a clue what the weather will bring for sure.

Hellsing could not help but wonder what the inside of the magic bag would smell like, with all the men cramming their bedrolls and other gear inside of it. She was glad that her own gear did not weigh her down enough to make it necessary to put her bedroll inside the bag too.

However, she said nothing to the others about her thoughts.

“As long as my bowstrings don’t get wet, I will be fine.”

She pondered the sky for a few seconds longer, then looked around.

“Come, Morrolan. Let us go look for shelter.”

She stepped off the path, looking around for what Morrolan had suggested – a cave, rather than just a sheltered spot.

The sorcerer looks around at their surroundings "We'd have to hunt for a cave...perhaps for a while," he interjects as Hellsing calls the big Duskblade. "We should just try to find some kind of tree cover to set the tents up." Abutan has done a bit of outdoors living, but never with any real knowledge of what was the right and wrong way to do things. He steals a glance at Hellsing and smiles.

Racial profiling aside, one would think an elf would be all over this shit.

When Morrolan mentions wet gear, the charismatic magic user glances back at his pack and grins. When he'd aquired his back pack, it was with days like this in mind. The tanned snakeskin pack repelled the water off the over lapping scales and kept his gear quite dry form the rain.

Vlad stops when Hellsing calls a halt. The weather aside, he was merrily making conversation as it was beginning to feel to quite. Call it nerves or whatever, but at any rate, the swashbuckler is glad for the excuse to talk.

“Well, I agree, we should be finding some shelter, “the dark hair man says. Being wet would just make the hike more miserable for him. He didn’t know how the Orekk remained positive at that prospect. Perhaps it is the anticipation of finally claiming the tomb below the mountain.

“Not sure I fancy a dank cave much either. Just a copse of trees that we can set up a tent and stay dry would work for me.”

Vlad is now woodsman, and so remains on the path as Hellsing drags Morrolan off to look for shelter. He takes this time to check out the surrounding landscape for anything of note.

“Think we should risk a fire?”

With the group possibly being in orc infested territory now, a fire might be a bad idea. All of which makes the swashbuckler dismayed if it does decided to rain. No fire means no way to easily dry off cloths and keep warm.

Orekk places a fist on his hip and lets his crossbow hang at his side. "So this fog is turning to rain?" he asks, scrutinizing the mists materializing about them. He seems reluctant to stop yet wary of the possibilities of a downpour.

If there was indeed rain, it might at least wash their scent from the trail.

His arm absently moved towards the large compartment of his pack where his tent was rolled.

The nature of the weather patterns is such that Hellsing doesn't think it will do more than drizzle over the next several hours. The misting fog will become heavier as well, but the clouds are not dark enough for it to be a storm or a true downpour.

A few minutes later, the elven ranger and duskblade find a nice location nestled into the hillside to set up the tents. The place is defensible and will take advantage of the trees to provide some shelter from above and bushes to hide the camp from view until almost upon it.